THE  SOUL  OF  THE  NATION 


BACCALAUREATE  SERMON  DELIVERED 
TO  THE  GRADUATING  CLASS  OF  THE 
UNIVERSITY  OF  PITTSBURGH  AT  THE 
BELLEFIELD  PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH 
ON  SUNDAY.  JUNE  II,  1916,  BY  CHAN- 
CELLOR  SAMUEL  BLACK  McCORMICK. 


THE    SOUL    OF    THE    NATION 

BACCALAUREATE  SERMON 

By 

CHANCELLOR  SAMUEL  BLACK  McCORMICK, 

UNIVERSITY  OF  PITTSBURGH. 

JUNE   11,  1916. 


"And  I  will  say  to  my  soul,  Soul,  thou  hast  much 
goods  laid  up  for  many  years;  take  thine  ease, 
eat,  drink,  be  merry."  Luke  12:19. 


This  man  had  not  learned  to  think  correctly.  In- 
deed, he  seems  a  sort  of  harmless,  good-natured,  pros- 
perous person  who  had  never  learned  to  think  at  all. 
He  had  a  productive  farm  whose  annual  crops  constantly 
increased  the  riches  for  which  he  apparently  had  no 
intelligent  use. 

Like  the  college  which,  as  its  president  facetiously 
remarked,  is  a  most  remarkable  conservator  of  knowl- 
edge, since  the  Freshmen  annually  bring  to  its  great 
stores  of  knowledge  and  the  Seniors  never  take  any  of  it 
away  with  them — so  this  man's  harvests  simply  accumu- 
lated, each  year  adding  and  taking  nothing  away,  until 
the  problem  of  taking  care  of  them  became  a  serious  tax 
on  his  ingenuity.  To  build  larger  barns  and  store  his 
fruits  was  the  most  feasible  idea  which  occurred  to  him. 
To  joy  his  soul  with  them,  in  ease  and  in  unlimited  indul- 
gence, was  the  only  conception  of  use  which  presented 
itself.  Soil  and  sun  and  rain  brought  the  good  gifts  to 
him,  and  it  was  up  to  him  to  show  appreciation  in  the 
only  way  he  knew  how,  by  feeding  them  to  his  soul. 


The  Soul  of  the  Nation. 


This  would  be  laughable  if  it  were  not  a  tragedy,  and 
one  which  constantly  recurs  as  generations  come  and  go. 
He  was  not  the  first  man  who  located  his  soul  in  his 
palate,  nor  the  last  one;  but  Jesus  has,  in  this  parable, 
made  him  a  very  conspicuous  one.  Jesus  used  the  story 
to  exhibit  the  folly  of  imagining  for  a  moment  that  a 
man's  life  consists  in  the  abundance  of  his  possessions. 
This  deplorable  tendency  on  the  part  of  humankind  has 
as  many  manifestations  of  it  as  there  are  people. 

Jesus  did  not  denounce  riches  or  the  people  who 
possessed  them.  He  only  taught  the  truth  about  them. 
Jesus  never  applauded  poverty  or  pronounced  blessed 
the  man  who  possesses  nothing.  Lazarus  in  Abraham's 
bosom  and  the  rich  man  in  torment  came  to  their  respec- 
tive habitations  not  by  reason  of  their  poverty  or  riches, 
but  by  reason  of  their  appreciation  or  lack  of  apprecia- 
tion of  the  values  of  life.  Jesus  did  recognize  the  handi- 
cap of  wealth  in  the  attainment  of  character,  but  he  never 
intimated  for  a  moment  that  wealth  was  bad  or  poverty 
good.  He  declared,  it  is  true,  that  love  of  riches  is  a 
root  of  evil;  and  in  this  he  states  a  fact  of  universal  ex- 
perience. What  he  meant  to  teach,  however,  in  this 
parable,  and  what  he  presented  again  and  again  in  all 
his  teaching,  was  the  supreme  importance  of  understand- 
ing life  itself,  and  rightly  apportioning  its  values  so  as 
to  realize  the  fulness  and  beauty  and  joy  of  it. 

This  thing  of  locating  one's  soul — or  life,  as  it  may 
be  translated — in  the  wrong  place  is  not  only  foolish  but 
disastrous.  It  cannot  help  but  affect  the  person  unfavor- 
ably. It  is  bound  to  cut  off  from  the  soul  the  proper 
nourishment,  and  result  in  a  process  of  dessication  and 
inanition.  It  is  curious  that  oftentimes  the  only  thing  a 
man  really  possesses  is  the  thing  which  gets  from  him 


At 

This  address  was  delivered  to  the  1916  graduating 
class  of  the  University  of  Pittsburgh,  numbering  428. 

During  the  school  year  of  1915-1916  there  were 
enrolled  3957  students  in  the  various  schools  of  the  Univer- 
sity. In  addition  to  these  there  were  many  others  enroled 
in  the  University  extension  work  throughout  Pennsylvania. 

This  large  number  of  students  greatly  taxed  the  ability 
of  the  University  to  house  them.  The  rapid  growth  of  this 
institution  makes  more  buildings  and  more  equipment 
urgent  necessities.  Even  now  the  University  is  compelled 
to  rent  outside  buildings  and  erect  temporary  shelters  for 
class  rooms  to  accommodate  the  entire  student  body. 

The  activities  of  the  University  of  Pittsburgh  are 
indispensable  in  the  training  of  young  men  and  young 
women  for  intelligent  public  and  private  service,  and  there- 
fore the  University  fills  a  great  public  need.  It  constitutes 
a  philanthrophy  second  to  none  in  this  great  district. 

The  University  feels  impelled  to  put  forth  an  earnest 
plea  for  the  continued  liberal  support  of  the  community 
and  the  State,  in  larger  measure  than  heretofore.  Such 
help  is  absolutely  necessary  in  order  that  more  buildings 
and  more  equipment  can  be  secured,  to  the  end  that  the 
highest  type  of  education  and  training  may  be  offered  the 
men  and  women  seeking  instruction  at  this  institution. 


Editorial  from  the  Pittsburgh  Gazette  Times  of  July  2j,  igi6. 


The 


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Gifts  to  the  University. 

Harvard  University  received  during  the  last 
12  months  total  gifts  of  $1,138,075.  Every  year 
the  University  funds  are  increased  handsome- 
ly by  gifts,  mostly  in  the  form  of  bequests. 
So  it  is  with  all  the  larger  and  older  colleges 
and  universities.  Harvard  was  founded  in 
1636.  Its  invested  funds  in  1909  totaled  $22,- 
716,759.  Like  Yale,  which  has  over  $10,000,000 
in  investments,  Harvard  is  made  the  bene- 
ficiary of  huge  bequests  because  its  progres- 
sive educational  and  research  work  is  a  grow- 
ing asset  of  the  world.  Money  given  to  an 
established  educational  institution  for  a  defin- 
ite purpose  works  to  that  end  for  all  time, 
promoting  community  welfare,  in  the  small 
sense,  by  enhacing  the  prestige  and  usefulness 
of  the  institution,  but  more  largely  contribut- 
ing to  the  advancement  of  the  human  race. 
The  time  has  gone  when  even  the  ignorant 
do  not  realize  the  value  to  mankind  of  earnest 
university  work.  Appreciation  of  the  worthi- 
ness of  these  efforts  is  responsible  for  the 
many  gifts  by  will  to  universities  for  the  con- 
tinuance and  enlargement  of  their  endeavors. 
But  not  all  the  money  should  go  to  a  few  in- 
stitutions if  the  widest  benefits  are  to  be  at- 
tained. 

In  the  University  of  Pittsburgh  we  have 
an  institution  firmly  planted  in  the  greatest 
industrial  center  It  is  doing  prodigious  work 
not  only  for  the  community  but  for  the  world. 
Its  educational  and  research  activities  are 
limited  only  by  its  pecuniary  means  to  prose- 
cute them.  Its  contributions  to  the  develop- 
ment of  individual  fortunes  here  and  else- 
where have  been  mighty  But  the  gifts  it  re- 
ceives are  meager  Why  is  it  that  so  few  of 
our  successful  men  overlook  the  University 
when  drafting  their  wills?  Pittsburgh  men 
are  keen  in  business ;  they  are  charitable.  They 
make  wise  investments  while  living.  Why  do 
they  neglect  an  investment  that  would  keep  a 
part  of  their  money  actively  employed  in  the 
common  advantage  and  enroll  their  names 
permanently  on  the  scroll  of  human  benefac- 
tors when  they  prepare  for  death y  Here  is 
something  worth  considering.  A  bequest  to 
the  University  of  Pittsburgh  of  a  part  of  one's 
surplus  wealth  would  be  but  just  recompense 
for  benefits  received.  Everyone  of  us  does 
benefit  by  the  work  of  the  University.  We 
all  ought  to  help  it  to  achieve  the  fullest 
measure  of  usefulness.  It  needs  funds  for  the 
purpose.  It  ought  to  be  a  Pittsburgh  habit 
to  include  in  every  will  a  bequest  to  the  Lni 
versity  of  Pittsburgh. 


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UNIVERSITY  ACTIVITIES 
1916 

College;  686  students 

School  of  Economics;  1025  students 

School  of  Education;  1099  students 

School  of  Engineering;  246  students 

School  of  Mines;  88  students 

School  of  Chemistry;  28  students 

Graduate  School;  145  students 

(All  of  these  schools  use  State  and  Thaw  Halls  and  seven 
temporary  structures  on  the  University  Campus.  The  School 
of  Education  also  uses  rented  quarters  at  No.  3439  Fifth 
Avenue.) 

School  of  Medicine;  129  students 

Pennsylvania  Hall,  University  Gampus 

School  of  Law;  176  students 

Rented  offices  in  Frick  Building  Annex 

School  of  Dentistry;  271  students 

Dental  Building,  University  Gampus 

School  of  Pharmacy;  241  students 

Pharmacy  Building,  Pride  and  Bluff  Streets 

Mellon  Institute  of  Industrial  Research, 

University  Gampus. 

Allegheny  Observatory, 

Riverview  Park 

University   Extension  Gourses,   in  various  parts  of 

Pennsylvania    (See  last  page) 

ENROLMENT 

Total  Students,  June,  1916  4134 

Reduction  for  duplicate  registration  117 

Total  enrolment  395  7 

Total  Students  in  State  and  Thaw   Halls  and 

Temporary   Buildings  3124 

Total  Students  on  University  Gampus  3524 

Total  Students  away  from  University  Gampus  610 


UNIVERSITY  EXTENSION 


During  the  recently  closed  school  year, 
1,034  lectures  and  addresses  were  delivered 
by  85  members  of  the  University  of  Pitts- 
burgh faculty.  The  approximate  total  atten- 
dance was  127,365.  These  lectures  included 
34  complete  courses,  in  addition  to  a  large 
number  of  single  lectures  and  addresses. 
Forty-three  centers  were  supplied  with  motion 
pictures,  714  exhibitions  being  given.  The 
estimated  attendance  was  513,000. 


The  Soul  of  the  Nation. 


least  care  and  culture.  It  is  impossible  to  nourish  the 
soul  with  a  farm  or  a  bond;  yet  multitudes  of  people  are 
making  no  other  provision  than  this  for  soul  nutriment. 
A  picture  on  a  man's  wall  may  cost  him  thousands;  but 
it  has  to  become  a  part  of  a  man's  soul  before  it  can  be 
of  any  actual  value  to  him.  No  man  in  this  world  has 
anything  except  what  is  worked  up  into  the  warp  and 
woof  of  his  life. 

Since  this  is  so  he  should  be  exceedingly  careful  in 
selecting  materials  for  assimilation.  The  man  in  the 
parable  proposed  to  feed  his  soul  corn.  If  he  had  not 
died  suddenly,  before  he  had  a  chance  to  carry  out  his 
plan,  he  probably  would  have  succeeded:  only  when  the 
thing  was  accomplished  his  soul  would  have  been  corn, 
too,  and  consequently  of  little  value.  The  time  will 
come  when  every  life  will  be  put  through  a  test  of  fire. 
What  remains  when  the  process  is  over  will  represent  the 
accumulated  value  of  his  thought,  his  sacrifice,  his  toil 
and  his  achievement.  Common  sense  would  plainly  urge 
a  man,  therefore,  to  give  to  this  supreme  thing  supreme 
consideration. 

To  find  one's  soul  and  care  for  it  is  manifestly  the 
chief  end  of  man.  It  is  the  chief  end  of  society,  the 
chief  end  of  the  nation.  Only  incidentally  are  things 
concerned  with  this  problem.  Yet  most  people  as  well 
as  most  nations  busy  themselves  principally  with  things. 
Things  are  of  value  only  in  so  far  as  they  can  be  worked 
up  into  character.  Let  us  meditate  for  a  little  while  upon 
this  truth  this  morning. 

The  first  defect  in  this  man's  mental  processes  was 
that  he  considered  only  himself.  It  was  not  simply  that 
the  meaning  of  life  had  never  revealed  itself  to  him.  It 
was  that  he  had  no  concern  for  any  one  else,  in  connection 


The  Soul  of  the  Nation. 


with  himself.  A  good  many  people  are  like  him.  Most 
of  us  are  disposed  to  act  on  the  principle  that  our  whole 
concern  is  to  take  care  of  ourselves  and  let  others  do 
likewise.  The  principle  is  a  correct  one  if  it  is  not  car- 
ried too  far.  We  forget,  however,  that  we  can  take  care 
of  ourselves  only  as  we  take  thought  for  others.  As 
well  attempt  to  hang  an  apple  tree  out  on  a  hickory  limb 
and  expect  a  crop  of  apples,  as  to  attempt  to  nurture 
one's  soul  into  fulness  of  growth  and  richness  of  power 
by  giving  exclusive  attention  to  it  alone.  I  am  not  talk- 
ing here  of  the  vice  of  selfishness.  I  am  talking  simply 
about  the  folly  of  it.  No  man  ever  got  happiness  by 
seeking  it.  Like  the  other  best  things  of  life,  even  char- 
acter iteself,  happiness  is  a  by-product.  It  results  from 
getting  into  perfect  accord  with  environment.  The 
apple  tree  pendant  had  plenty  of  sunshine  and  all  the 
rain  there  was;  but  it  did  not  have  the  essential  elements 
which  the  earth  contributed  through  the  roots.  Life 
tragedies  are  not  so  much  the  result  of  wrongdoing  as 
they  are  the  result  of  wrong  thinking.  Selfishness  is 
not  so  much  of  a  hurt  to  other  people  as  it  is  a  hurt  to 
oneself.  The  wrong  of  it  consists  in  denying  the  soul 
the  only  thing  which  can  make  it  grow.  People  know 
this  when  they  stop  to  think  about  it;  but  the  trouble  is 
they  are  so  eager  to  accumulate  by  getting  things  that 
they  fail  to  remember  that  the  only  way  they  can  get 
what  is  worth  having  is  by  giving  out  themselves  in 
service  to  other  people.  This  rich  man  is  a  conspicuous 
illustration  of  this  fact. 

He  was  guilty,  too,  of  employing  a  wrong  method. 
He  proposed  to  feed  his  soul  on  corn  and  let  it  have  a 
good  time,  in  ease,  in  merriment,  and  in  indulgence.  It 
was  a  little  like  the  man  who  proposed  to  fool  his  hens 


The  Soul  of  the  Nation. 


by  gradually  substituting  sawdust  for  oatmeal.  When 
he  had  the  experiment  at  the  point  of  success,  his  hens 
died.  The  soul  cannot  be  fooled  with  activity,  and  toil, 
and  money,  and  power,  and  success.  When  the  man 
achieves  them  he  finds  that  the  soul  has  died.  It  must 
have  friendship  and  beauty  and  knowledge  and  grace  and 
love  and  goodness  and  sympathy  and  service.  It  has  no 
time  for  ease  and  indulgence.  It  finds  its  joy  in  the 
things  which  the  eye  cannot  see,  not  in  things  which  one 
measures  with  a  bushel  or  buys  by  the  pound.  No  won- 
der Jesus  called  the  man  foolish.  He  might  have  used  a 
much  stronger  term  and  still  have  kept  far  within  the 
limit  of  truth. 

All  this  would  have  been  both  comic  and  tragic 
enough  if  it  had  been  the  extent  of  his  folly.  He  didn't 
stop  here,  however.  He  assumed  that  those  big  barns 
would  hold  the  only  accumulations  which  made  life 
worth  while.  He  forgot  the  fundamental  fact  of  exist- 
tence,  that  the  only  thing  a  man  really  has  is  not  the 
fruits  stored  in  barns,  the  merchandise  in  warehouses, 
and  the  securities  in  the  safe  deposit,  but  the  qualities 
of  soul  stored  up  in  his  own  personality.  It  is  pathetic 
the  mistake  men  make  in  evaluating  life.  Wealth  is  a 
wonderful  thing.  It  is  stored-up  power.  It  is  the  pro- 
duct of  brain,  energy,  enterprise,  foresight,  self-denial. 
It  not  only  develops  resources,  constructs  railways,  and 
manufactures  goods;  it  also  founds  universities,  builds 
hospitals  and  churches,  and  sends  the  truth  to  the  utter- 
most parts  of  the  earth.  God  bless  the  man  who  knows 
how  to  create  wealth  and  who  makes  its  distribution 
possible.  I  am  not  talking  now,  however,  about  the 
good  money  will  do  in  the  world;  only  of  what  happens 
to  the  man  who  confuses  it  with  his  life  and  imagines 


6  The  Soul  of  the  Nation. 

that  they  are  equivalents,  or  at  least  that  they  may  be  so 
assimilated  as  to  become  identical.  There  comes  a  time 
in  every  life  when  what  the  man  wants  is  sympathy, 
friendship,  esteem,  forgiveness,  grace.  He  gets  them  in 
the  exact  measure  in  which  he  has  made  himself  worthy 
of  them.  What  profits  the  man  that  at  the  supreme  hour 
he  possess  everything  else  but  an  enriched  and  full- 
grown  soul? 

The  glory  of  it  and  the  dread  significance  of  it,  too, 
is  that  the  whole  matter  is  left  with  the  individual.  He 
can  do  as  he  pleases  about  it.  He  can  deliberately  face 
to  the  right  and  march  straight  to  heaven,  or  deliberately 
face  to  the  left  and  march  straight  to  hell.  Probably  he 
would  do  the  former  always  and  the  latter  never,  if  he 
should  stop  to  think  about  life ;  if  he  should  honestly  seek 
to  discover  his  soul  and  nurture  it.  By  this  I  do  not 
mean  that  a  man  shall  deliberately  set  to  work,  by  a 
process  of  introspection,  to  discover  something  which 
is  within  him  and  proceed  to  analyze  and  appraise  it; 
then  label  it  so  he  will  know  it  as  his  soul.  I  fear  he 
would  require  for  this  a  magnifying  glass  more  powerful 
than  any  to  be  found  in  stock  at  the  manufactory.  What 
I  do  mean  is  that  whatever  scheme  of  life  he  adopts  he 
will  remember  that  his  main  business  is  to  learn  to  care 
supremely  for  things  of  real  worth — kindness,  goodness, 
self-control,  justice,  holiness,  truth,  friendship,  sympathy, 
understanding,  grace;  and  that  he  will  have  the  good 
sense  to  know  that  he  will  possess  these  things  in  the 
measure  in  which  he  exercises  them  toward  his  fellows. 
Herein  he  will  find  his  soul  and  nourish  it;  and  he  can 
then  work  as  hard  at  his  business  or  profession  as  his 
energy  commands,  and  throw  himself  into  any  under- 
taking with  deathless  ardor  up  to  the  full  measure  of 
his  ambition. 


The  Soul  of  the  Nation. 


To  do  one's  task  is  one  thing.  To  live  one's  life  is 
another;  and  the  latter  is  the  vital  fact  of  existence. 
Commonplace  as  this  is,  it  is  the  one  secret  which  gives 
significance  to  a  human  life.  I  sometimes  wonder  what 
we  are  here  for,  anyway.  The  farmer  toiling  in  the  sun 
for  sixty  years,  and  dies;  the  millhand  toiling  in  the  hot 
breath  of  the  furnace  for  thirty  years,  and  dies;  the 
merchant  toiling  in  the  counting  room  forty  years,  and 
dies — what  return  have  they  for  their  toil?  What  have 
they  gotten  out  of  it?  How  can  they  get  anything  out 
of  it?  Is  there  anything  for  the  man  more  than  for  the 
horse  which  draws  his  plough,  the  dog  which  trots  by 
his  side,  the  fly  which  tickles  his  nose?  How  can  a  man 
explain  to  himself  his  own  existence,  and  justify  it  by  the 
way  he  lives  his  life  ?  Every  man  will  have  to  propound 
this  query  for  himself  and  discover  the  answer;  and  I 
counsel  him  to  do  it.  The  answer  will  be  found  some- 
where in  what  Jesus  calls  the  soul  or  the  life;  not  in 
the  things  which  are  outside  him  or  the  accumulation  he 
leaves  behind  him. 

It  is  silly  to  interpret  life  in  terms  of  happiness  or  in 
terms  of  knowledge  or  in  terms  of  success  or  in  terms  of 
power  or  in  terms  of  wealth  or  in  terms  of  toil,  or  in  terms 
of  anything  which  has  not  in  itself  the  very  essence  of 
eternity — deathless  in  its  power  of  resistance  to  any  des- 
troying power.  The  earlier  in  the  allotted  period  of 
three-score  years  and  ten  the  individual  proposes  to  find 
out  what  he  is  here  for,  the  more  completely  he  may 
realize  the  meaning  of  his  life.  If  life  is  only  a  little 
streak  of  vitality  between  two  eternities,  with  no  sig- 
nificant relation  to  either,  he  should  know  it.  If  on  the 
other  hand  life  has  relationship  to  some  infinite  per- 
sonality with  whom  its  destiny  is  inextricably  connected 


8  The  Soul  of  the  Nation. 

and  in  whom  alone  the  joy  and  sorrow  of  it,  the  toil  and 
toll  of  it,  the  pain  and  ecstasy  of  it,  the  disappointment 
and  achievement  of  it  can  find  adequate  explanation  and 
justification,  then  as  a  sensible  man  he  will  find  out  this 
fact  and  be  governed  by  it.  The  folly  of  the  man  in  the 
parable  was  that  this  thought  did  not  occur  to  him.  For 
him  it  had  no  existence.  It  seems  indeed  hardly  worth 
while  to  give  any  attention  to  a  soul  of  this  sort,  since  it 
is  so  obviously  and  so  frankly  material — except  of  course 
as  a  warning  to  avoid  its  disastrous  folly. 

Sometimes  it  happens  that  what  a  man  will  not  do  for 
himself  he  will  do  for  others.  Many  people  without 
knowing  it  are  immensely  bigger  than  they  seem  to  them- 
selves to  be.  Let  them  move  along  in  their  accustomed 
groove,  absorbed  in  their  daily  tasks,  and  they  never 
wake  to  the  fact  that  they  have  a  soul  at  all.  Let  some 
calamity  threaten  themselves,  their  community,  their  na- 
tion, and  they  rouse  to  a  new  consciousness  of  life — to 
the  duty,  the  responsibility  ?  and  the  glory  of  it.  Often- 
times nothing  short  of  a  tragedy  will  bring  a  soul  to  its 
real  self -consciousness.  Such  tragedy  always  becomes  a 
masked  blessing.  Vital  for  the  individual  that  he  shall 
awake,  it  is  still  more  vital  that  the  nation  shall  reach 
its  self-consciousness  and  discover  that,  in  comparison 
with  its  material  wealth,  its  soul  is  infinitely  priceless. 
Even  if  it  cost  a  Liege  and  a  Eheims,  it  is  a  small  price 
for  France  to  pay  that  the  people  should  awaken  to  the 
great  fact  that  the  nation  possesses  a  soul  of  heroic 
grandeur,  of  supreme  courage,  self-sacrifice  and  endur- 
ance; and  that  the  fact  proclaims  itself  by  the  very 
majesty  and  splendor  of  it,  with  irresistible  power  and 
with  marvelous  inspiration  to  all  the  peoples  of  the  world. 


The  Soid  of  the  Nation.  9 

I  look  with  a  solemn  feeling  of  elation,  of  gratitude, 
of  aspiring  and  expectant  hope,  upon  the  daily  recurring 
scenes  of  these  June  days  in  America,  when  countless 
thousands  of  boys  and  girls,  of  young  men  and  women, 
are  passing  out  from  schools  and  colleges  and  universities 
to  swell  the  stream  of  American  energy,  vitality,  enthu- 
siasm, service,  and  achievement. 

The  very  thought  of  what  it  means  to  the  nation  and 
to  the  world  warms  the  blood  that  has  chilled  with  the 
years,  kindles  the  hope  which  had  flagged  with  its  dis- 
appointments, and  begets  a  new  ardor  of  enthusiasm 
which  had  died  down  with  its  defeats;  and  in  those  whose 
blood  never  chills,  whose  enthusiasm  never  abates,  and 
whose  hope  never  declines  it  produces  a  new  stimulus;  a 
new  ardor  of  devotion,  a  new  elation  of  power,  a  new 
assurance  of  victory  which  touches  the  spirit  into  om- 
nipotence. 

But  if  I  thought  that  the  youth  of  America  would, 
in  their  absorption  in  self-interest,  forget  to  care  for 
their  country;  if  I  thought  that  these  young  people 
would,  in  their  ambition  for  America's  greatness  and 
power  as  a  world  nation,  forget  the  soul  of  America,  its 
fineness  of  spirit,  its  enthusiasm  for  humanity,  its  ideal 
of  high  service,  its  placing  the  things  of  the  spirit  far 
above  the  things  of  the  flesh,  then  all  my  elation,  en- 
thusiasm and  hopefulness  would  be  gone;  and  in  their 
place  would  be  born  doubt  and  fear,  dread  and  despair; 
for  then  I  should  know  that  America,  too,  would,  like  the 
nations  of  centuries  gone  which  made  the  mistake,  go 
down  into  the  vortex  of  ruin  which  in  all  the  ages  has 
swallowed  nations  which  loved  power  and  forgot  God. 

I  do  not  so  fear ;  and  to  me  this  June  month  is  full 
of  the  inspiration  which  strengthens  the  arm,  fires  the 


10  The  Soul  of  the  Nation. 

heart,  and  energizes  the  will  for  loyal  service  to  country 
and  for  altruistic  endeavor  for  mankind. 

But  should  we  build  navies,  train  armies,  and  make 
guns  and  ammunition  if  this  be  our  national  ideal?  Should 
we  give  military  instruction  in  colleges  and  universities, 
establish  summer  camps  for  the  learning  of  war,  train 
our  women  in  hospital  skill;  and  organize  our  resources 
for  quick  mobilization  and  action?  Yea,  verily;  as  long 
as  there  are  peoples  who  believe  in  the  arbitrament  of 
armed  force,  in  the  justice  of  physical  might.  But  if 
there  lurks  danger  that  in  such  preparation  for  defense 
the  soul  of  America  should  receive  hurt,  then  let  us 
have  a  care  that  through  renewed  emphasis  upon  high 
ideal,  unselfish  purpose  and  altruistic  endeavor  we  kindle 
bright  in  the  soul  of  America  the  fire  of  devotion  to 
truth,  to  honor,  to  liberty,  to  justice,  and  to  humanity. 

If  America  abhor  thrift,  give  herself  over  to  indul- 
gence and  extravagance,  and  fail  to  lay  hold  upon  her 
opportunity  to  gain  world  markets  and  finance  world 
industrial  projects,  America  thereby  loses  an  opportunity 
which  wTill  probably  never  come  again,  and  thereby  loses 
an  opportunity  of  financial  and  industrial  leadership 
wThich  would  be  infinitely  desirable;  and  in  so  doing 
makes  proclamation  of  the  fact  that  America  is  not  yet 
ready  to  lay  hold  upon  her  destiny.  But  if  America 
put  on  the  habit  of  thrift,  gird  herself  to  toil,  inure  her- 
self to  sacrificial  endurance,  go  forth  worthily  to  meet 
her  opportunity  and,  possessing  world  markets,  leading 
world  industries,  gaining  world  triumphs,  accomplish 
this  great  undertaking  only  to  increase  America's  wealth 
and  power  and  lordship  over  the  wrorld,  then  the  hurt  to 
the  nation  would  be  infinitely  greater  than  the  mere 


The  Soul  of  the  Nation.  11 

failure  to  seize  the  opportunity  of  material  greatness 
which  seems  just  at  hand. 

Just  as  America  must  have  military  power,  the  un- 
questioned ability  to  defend  herself  against  any  attack, 
if  she  is  ever  to  attain  dominating  influence  as  a  teacher 
of  arbitration,  conciliation  and  law,  in  settling  interna- 
tional differences,  instead  of  armed  force;  so  if  America 
is  to  have  dominating  influence  as  a  teacher  of  truth,  of 
honor,  of  justice,  of  liberty,  of  service,  of  the  rule  of  the 
spiritual  over  the  material  forces  of  civilization,  she 
should  be  great  in  her  industries,  her  finance,  her  com- 
merce, her  merchantmen,  and  in  her  material  riches;  fo* 
only  so  can  she  demonstrate  that  she  puts  these  as  second 
in  value  to  the  higher  values  which  make  up  the  very 
soul  of  the  nation — that  it  is  the  soul  of  America,  the 
spirit  of  the  nation,  which  rules,  which  dominates  all 
her  activities,  which  controls  all  her  resources,  and  which 
leads  in  ever-ascending  progress  toward  the  dominion 
of  truth  over  ignorance,  of  freedom  over  oppression,  of 
honor  over  gain,  of  justice  over  force,  and  of  service 
and  blessedness  and  peace  over  self-seeking  and  power  as 
the  ideals  both  of  the  people  and  of  the  nation  of 
America. 

And  it  all  depends  on  us.  If  we  do  not  believe  these 
things;  or  if,  believing  them,  we  do  not  consider  them 
vital  enough  to  practice  them,  then  the  soul  of  America 
will  never  grow  into  the  beneficent,  dominating,  control- 
ling moral  and  spiritual  force  wThich  it  ought  to  become. 
If  the  people  amass  wealth  and  know  no  use  for  it  but 
to  build  greater  barns  to  store  it,  then  the  nation  will  do 
this  same  thing  and  be  guilty  of  the  same  monumental 
stupidity  as  the  man  in  tha  parable. 


12  The  Soul  of  the  Nation. 

Just  when  we  have  attained,  this  same  voice  will  be 
again  heard:  "Thou  foolish  America,  this  night  is  thy 
soul  required  of  thee ;  and  the  things  which  thou  hast  pre- 
pared, whose  shall  they  be?  Thy  soul,  0  America,  was 
the  important  thing;  and  thou  didst  forget  it.  Thy  soul, 
0  America,  is  the  reason,  the  hope,  the  use  of  thy  riches; 
and  thou  didst  starve  it,  stifle  it,  neglect  it,  and  now,  hav- 
ing lost  that  which  will  make  thy  power  a  blessing,  I 
shall  require  that  of  thee — and  thou  shalt  forever  die." 

It  is  ours  to  guard  against  this  great  and  stupid  sin 
by  purposing  that  so  far  as  in  us  lies  we  shall  choose,  as 
the  first  duty,  the  cultivating  in  ourselves,  and  using  our 
influence  to  cultivate  in  the  people  of  our  country,  the 
moral  and  spiritual  qualities  which  make  up  the  soul 
of  our  people.  The  man  in  the  parable  located  his  soul 
in  his  appetite.  He  is  exactly  like  the  man  who  locates 
it  in  his  business  or  in  his  pleasure  or  in  his  taste  or  in 
his  blameless  life. 

I  speak  to  young  men  and  women  who  are  of  differ- 
ent nationalities,  religions,  customs,  and  ideals.  To  all 
alike  I  wish  to  say  that  if  we  locate  our  soul  in  any  other 
than  in  God;  if  we  seek  to  cultivate  it  except  Godward, 
we  shall  utterly  fail  so  far  as  concerns  ourselves  and  so 
far  as  concerns  our  country. 

To  me  God's  Fatherhood  and  man's  sonship  is  the 
ultimate  in  all  my  striving,  in  all  my  thinking,  and  in  all 
my  aspiring;  to  me  God  is  friend,  companion,  helper, 
guide,  the  pardoner  of  my  sins,  the  restorer  of  my  soul, 
the  builder  of  my  spirit,  the  maker  and  perfecter  of  my 
life.  My  religion  responds  to  the  sentiment  expressed 
in  such  words  as  these: 


The  Soul  of  the  Nation.  13 


"Just  as  I  am;  Thou  wilt  receive, 
Wilt  welcome,  pardon,  cleanse,  relieve 

0  Lamb  of  God,  I  come." 

"I  lay  my  sins  on  Jesus, 
The  spotless  Lamb  of  God; 
He  bears  them  all,  and  frees  us 
From  the  accursed  load; 

1  bring  my  guilt  to  Jesus, 
To  wash  the  crimson  stains 
White  in  his  blood  most  precious, 
Till  not  a  spot  remains. " 

"Plenteous  grace  with  thee  is  found, 
Grace  to  cleanse  from  every  sin; 
Let  the  healing  streams  abound, 
Make  and  keep  me  pure  within; 
Thou  of  life  the  fountain  art, 
Freely  let  me  take  of  Thee; 
Spring  Thou  up  within  my  heart, 
Rise  to  all  eternity. " 


I  am,  however,  the  last  person  to  insist  that  any 
other  person's  religion  shall  express  itself  as  mine  does, 
or  to  give  to  any  one  else  the  exact  formula  which  shall 
serve  for  his  religious  faith  and  needs.  A  man's  religion 
is  a  personal  thing  between  himself  and  his  God,  and  a 
stranger  should  not  intermeddle  with  it.  If  anything 
should  be  sacred  to  oneself  it  is  his  faith;  it  is  the  secrets 
of  one's  soul;  it  is  the  holy  of  holies  where  one  converses 
and  holds  communion  with  his  Father,  seeks  His  for- 
giveness, feels  His  restoring  power,  gets  the  joy  and 
strength  and  inspiration  which  can  come  from  the  Father 
alone.  What  I  do  insist  upon,  however,  is  that  we  make 
an  irreparable  mistake  if  for  one  moment  we  imagine 
that  we  can  care  for  our  own  soul  and  for  the  soul  of 
America  if  we  seek  it  apart  from  God;  if  we  put  aside 
what  we  call  religion;  if  we  disregard  the  pleadings  of 


14  The  Soul  of  the  Nation. 

the  immortal  spirit  and  rely  upon  the  aids,  the  incentives 
and  inspirations  which  men  alone  create.  Only  in  God 
whence  we  have  come,  to  whom  we  must  return,  can  we 
find  the  creative  power  wherewith  to  build  up  and  fit  for 
its  eternal  habitation  the  soul  of  the  man;  and  only  in 
Him  can  the  soul  of  the  nation  be  fashioned  and  made 
rich  in  the  things  which  make  for  national  wellbeing  and 
which  carried  over  into  the  nations  of  the  world  make 
for  the  weal  of  humankind. 

To  the  Members  of  the  Graduating  Class: 

Always  the  present  is  all  we  have,  and  therefore  the 
most  important  thing  we  have. 

Surely,  however,  this  present  day  is  the  most  im- 
portant among  all  the  days  the  world  has  known.  Soon 
the  frightful  war  devastating  Europe  will  cease,  and 
the  problem  of  rehabilitating  the  world's  stricken  civil- 
ization must  be  taken  up  and  every  intelligent  person 
must  make  some  contribution  to  this  process  of  recon- 
struction. 

Most  predictions  are  perilous;  but  one  certain  pre- 
diction we  can  easily  make  at  this  time,  and  this  is  that 
democracy  is  to  be  henceforth  a  vastly  more  vital  world 
fact  than  at  any  other  time  in  the  world's  history.  This 
means  a  vastly  enlarged  individual  opportunity  and 
responsibility.  Always  has  it  been  true  that  a  man  is 
his  brother's  keeper;  that  he  cannot  live  to  himself; 
that  his  mission  is  to  serve  his  fellows.  This  is  tremend- 
ously true  in  this  epochal  period  in  the  history  of  man- 
kind. The  times  call  for  consecrated  men  and  women, 
for  high-souled  men  and  women,  for  intelligence  and 
altruism  and  power;  and  you  are  the  people  who  must 
respond  to  this  call. 


The  Soul  of  the  Nation.  15 

Be  the  best  you  know  how  as  lawyers,  as  physicians, 
as  engineers,  as  teachers,  and  the  rest;  give  your  days 
and  your  nights  to  your  mental  and  moral  and  profess- 
ional equipment  for  your  J:fe  work;  but  purpose  in  this 
solemn  hour,  as  you  stand  on  the  threshold  of  your  career, 
that  your  chief  care  will  be  for  your  soul  and  that,  in 
the  service  you  will  render  to  mankind,  you  will  help  to 
build  up  and  make  perfect  the  soul  of  America  that  she 
may,  in  the  fulfilment  of  the  divine  plan,  be  fitted  to 
render  her  high  and  holy  service  to  the  nations  of  the 
world.  God  counsel  you,  guide  you,  keep  you,  enlarge 
you,  and  in  the  satisfaction  of  your  hopes  for  material 
success  give  you  the  higher  satisfaction  which  comes 
from  serving  well  your  day  and  generation  among  men. 


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